Present Simple

and Continuous
Can you tell me?...
Do you have any
family traditions?
 Present Simple vs Continuous
permanent situation or state temporary situations
She works as a nurse. We’re staying at the park hotel at present.
He owns a large shop.
repeated actions/ habits
I usually get up at 7:30. actions happening at or
around the moment of speaking
laws of nature or She is looking for a better job.
permanent truth
Money doesn’t buy happiness.
timetable/ programme (future) fixed arrangements (future)
The match finishes at 11 p.m. The Browns are visiting us tonight.
The plane leaves at 7:15.
 Specially continuous
● annoyance or criticism with “always”
You are always leaving the dirty dishes in the sink!

● changing or developing situations

His English is getting better.
The amount of homeless people is growing too fast.

am/is/are being
to tell how someone is behaving now

Compare
I can’t understand why he’s being so selfish. He isn’t usually like that.
He never thinks of other people. He’s very selfish. (all the time, not only now)
Exercise
Choose the correct option
1. Anna is Italian. She is coming/ comes from Italy.
2. Paul listens/ is listening to a new record in his room.
3. Joan weights/ is weighting 50 kilos.
4. Why are you feeling/ do you feel your pockets? Have you lost anything?

Are the sentences correct?

1. My boss has lunch with his wife now.
2. Why are you calling? Is anything wrong?
3. The salary levels grow higher in our company.
4. Anne be so nervous these days. I have no idea what’s wrong with her. She
isn’t usually like that.
DO NOT MAKE THOSE MISTAKES
happy
Don’t forget about
our verbs-helpers in
ENDING
negative sentences
and questions (in ps
The –s ending is only
it’s DO and in pc it’s
used in HE/SHE/IT
BE). PLEASE use each
and nowhere else! We
verb in a correct form
DO NOT as well use it
in questions and
negatives because we
TO BE (or not have DO (that
to be) changes to “does”)
Present Simple We form the present simple like this:

I play
You play
He/she/it plays

We play
They play
Present Simple We form the present simple like this:

3rd person singular (he/she/it) we add –s

• +s
start – starts come – comes

• +es if the verb ends in –ch, –ss, –sh, or –o

Teach – teaches miss – misses
Do – does go – goes

• +ies if the verb ends in –y we change –y to –i

Fly – flies cry – cries study -
studies
I don’t (do not) play
You don’t (do not) play Exam tip! You can use
He/she/it doesn’t (does not) play short forms in informal
We don’t (do not) play letter only!
They don’t (do not) play
? Yes, I do.
Do You play? No, I don’t.
Yes, he/she/it does.
Does He/she/it play? No, he/she/it doesn’t.
Yes, they do.
Do They play?
No, they don’t.
 We form the present
Present Continuous continuous like this:

am to be
is Verb+ing I am
are He/she/it is
You/we/they are

• Usually we just add –ing

spend – spending learn – learning
• If the werb ends in –e we drop it and add –ing
write – writing make - making
I’m not learning
He/she/it isn’t (is not) learning Exam tip! You can use
You/We/They aren’t (are not) learning short forms in informal
letter only!

?
Is he/she/it coming?
Are you/we/they coming?
Yes, he/she/it is.
No, he/she/it isn’t.
Yes, you/we/they are.
No, you/we/they aren’t.
Yes, I am.
No, I’m not.
We use present simple
o for something that happens regularly (or always)
every day/week/year, often,
never, sometimes
Sally cycles to school every day.
He often comes late to the class.
o for facts We use present continuous
Cows eat grass.
We don’t see the sun at night. o for something that is happening now
at the moment, now, today

Look! It’s raining

My dad is watching TV in the living room.

o for arrangements in the future

We’re playing tennis tomorrow.

I’m visiting my dentist on Monday.
anybody everybody nobody somebody

anyone everyone no one someone

anything everything nothing something

 Indefinite pronouns
We use a singular verb after an indefinite pronoun:
Everybody loves Sally.
Everything was ready for the party.

! Everybody enjoyed the concert. They stood up and clapped.

I will tell somebody that dinner is ready. They have been waiting a long
time.

In negative clauses, we use pronouns with no- (not any-)

Nobody came. (NOT Anybody didn't come.)
We do not use negative in a clause with nobody, no one or nothing:
Nobody came. (NOT Nobody didn't come.)
Nothing happened. (NOT Nothing didn't happen.)
11. … in our class passed the grammar test!
A) Everything
B) Everyone
C) Something
D) Nothing
E) Every

12. Did you guys do … interesting on

the weekend?
A) anything
B) anywhere
C) somewhere
D) everything
E) somewhere
15. Many people think there may be alien life … in the
universe.
A) something Some advice:
LEARN
B) somewhere GRAMMAR!!
C) anything
D) nothing
16. There are still lots of empty seats in the theater.
We can sit … we like.
A) anything
B) anyone
C) anywhere
D) somewhere